Hong Kong's Tian Tan Buddha

Tian Tan Buddha (天壇大佛), also known as the Hong Kong Giant Buddha, is an enormous 34 meter statue, one of the five giant Buddha statues in China, situated in Ngong Ping, Lantau Island, Hong Kong. Tian Tan Buddha, positioned on a lotus throne surrounded by eight smaller bronze statues resembling gods, oversees the monastery which is build on a plateau rising 2,330 feet above sea level.

There are a few ways you can visit the Tian Tan Buddha. I went by the MTR route and stopped at the Tung Chung station. Tung Chung station by the way is the place where you can find the citygate outlets, home of the outlet shops in Hong Kong. You can find most of the major brands in that big shopping centre. Literally a place where you can shop / eat till you drop. Below is a picture of the citygate outlets.

From Tung Chung station, you can either take bus 23 to the Tian Tan Buddha (last stop), or you can take the cable car (more information here). Below is a picture of the cable car station, also known as the Ngong Ping 360, which surprisingly is quite near the bus 23 bus stop.

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Ngong Ping 360 taken from the Bus 23 bus stop

Based on the information at the bus stop, the ride will cost HKD17.20 on a weekday and HKD27 on the other days (e.g. holidays, weekends, etc). The bus 23 ride will take about 45mins. Upon reaching, you will see the Ngong Ping village towards your left. Below is a picture of the gate to the village and the map of Ngong Ping village.

I didn't find the village interesting, although there is one "wishing" tree in the middle of the village. At least I thought it was a wishing tree. Below is a picture of the tree.

Anyway, your focus won't be on the village because the Giant Buddha will take up most of your attention once you reach this place. :) Below is another map of the area near the Giant Buddha.

And now, what you've been waiting for (I think ...).

Can you see the Tian Tan Buddha? Anyway, there will be a small ticket counter on the right hand side. You can purchase meal tickets to the Po Lin Monastery vegetarian meal which is quite good by the way. The normal meal will cost about HKD65 and grant you entrance to the hall below the Tian Tan Buddha. There is a deluxe set that costs about HKD100. I will write a separate post for this vegetarian meal so that this post will not be too lengthy.

Better view? The above picture was taken around the half way mark.

I'm almost there.

Yes I did it!! :) *pant pant*

Although it was stated that there are 8 smaller bronze statues, I only remembered seeing 6 of them. Below are the pictures of 6 of the bronze statues surrounding the Tian Tan Buddha.

For your information, you're not allowed to take pictures in the hall directly beneath the Giant Buddha. So enjoy the scenery and wind from the top. It's worth it. Stay tuned for another post on the Wisdom Path, which is around the area.